Unpopular Popular
by N.V.9
Summary: Who knew being yourself will be the key to being happy? COMPLETE


**Look toward profile/bio for disclaimer and anything else involving this story.**

I'm not sure how it happened. I mean I haven't done anything to make me stand out from anyone else or to make me special. The only thing I could think of that would have made this happen was me being, well, me.

I mean, I'm not good in sports. I do okay but I wouldn't be one of the first to run out all excited to be kicking, throwing, or catching a ball. Me and sports don't really mix.

I'm not the smartest. I'm an averge student. I get B's and C's and a few A's thrown in but nothing to make me stand out. I do my homework when it's asked and turn it in when it's wanted.

I'm not all into school spirit. Why anyone would wish to go out in the cold or heat to cheer for anyone is beyond me. The one time I did, I smacked myself for it. I was in slow cooking heat agony.

I'm not drop dead gorgeous or monster like ugly. My looks are average, well to me they are anyway. People say differently. Not all of them the best compliments but they don't mean any harm. Not to me anyway. What they say is their opinion and not mine. Besides my dad always told me that when someone is mean to you it means they're jealous of something you have. What it is, I may never even know. My dad was a smart man and still is. It was lots of talks into the middle of the night that made me not take everything to heart. To let people be them and not force them to fit my image. Now a days, no one teases me. We're not little kids anymore so I guess they matured like I did.

I have no goals. The only thing that I could think of that would be considered a goal is trying to get by the day I'm currently on. I don't think of tomorrow or the day after. I don't think about the next year or the next decade. To me, everyday is the same with a different title.

I put on one shoe at a time like anyone else. I breath, eat, and sleep like they do, only not the exact same food. I don't follow crowds or the latest trends. I don't really do what is expected of me. What I do, I want to do. I live my life the way I wish. Now that doesn't mean that I do bad things like smoke, drink, party, or anything of that nature. It's not really my thing, but if it's someone elses, I'm not going to condem them for it. That also doesn't mean I sit at home, have no friends, or a total outcast.

The funny thing is, I consider myself unpopular because of all the things people might consider faults. I don't mind being unpopular. I really don't think I'm material enough to be a role model for my peers or anything like that. I don't try to fit in to any of the groups, but somehow I'm always accepted. You see, while I don't look for them, they look for me. Weird huh?

You see, while I don't think I'm popular or close to it, I have a lot of friends. I think I know everyone in my school, other schools, and even people all over town and out of town on first name bases after a few meetings. I remember all of their names and weirdly, even after one meeting of six seconds, they always remember mine. If you asked anyone I have ever met what my name was, they'd tell you without having to think about it. I'm not saying that to boost my own ego, I'm only telling you to explain the things in my life and how it is.

Anyway, while I have lots of friends, I don't have a best friend. It's not really trust issues. It's more like, I find no reason to use it in front of anyone.

I find no reason to be claimed as 'best friend' let alone claim someone else. It's not like the one I would claim as such would know more about me then the next person. My life is nothing specail. I find it average and can't find a reason for someone else to enjoy it. If they asked a question, I'd answer it. My life is an open book. Well, it seems like it most days since everyone knows more things about me then I know myself. So back on track, I have no one person to give the title of 'best friend' to. To me the 'best' is just another title. I'm not all to fond of titles to begin with anyway. So the 'best' part of best friend is always left out.

Which doesn't stop anyone from calling me their best friends. Once again I'm not boosting my ego but if you asked anybody that have met me who their best friend is, my name would be mentioned. So I'm a best friend to a lot of people.

From what I can see, and what my father could figure out, it's because they trust me enough to let them into their lives and tell me their greatest fear. Apparently me being me lets them be them when it's only us hanging out. When other people are around, they're someone else that's not them but at the same time is them. When it's just me, they don't have to worry about me judging them or lecturing them. They can act the way they halfway wished they could in public and know that I won't mind.

I can tell you a lot of thing about a lot of people that you would never suspect but I won't. The reason is because they trusted me enough to let me see their fears and dreams and I'm not going to open my mouth and speak their words to another. It's not my place to spread a story about this or that. I find those boring and unnecessary. Why anyone would want to spend their days speaking about someone elses life is beyond me.

Another thing my dad and I agree on is that I can always be counted on. Now my dad doesn't know anything beyond the people who are calling me their best friend. He thinks it's nice that they feel that way about me. He also thinks it's amusing that I have yet to pick my own best friend but he lets me be. Anyway, when any friend of mine is in need, I'm always there. They know if they call me at two in the afternoon or three in the moring I'll always answer their calls. Half the time I'm on the phone talking to one person or another about this or that.

Apparently a lot of people count on my advice about everything. I don't kown why that is. Like I said earlier, I'm not into fashion or anything really. But if one of my friends calls me about dating troubles or about clothes, I'll honestly tell them what I think. If I think it's bad, they'll know but I won't force their judgement. I'm not here to change them. I'm just giving them a different outlook on it. It's up to them what they choose. If someone is wishing to speak to me about a new thing they want to try, who am I to stop them? Nobody that's who. I'm just a guy that's living my own life and in the process gaining friends like crazy.

Now you'd think with all that I've mentioned, I'd be popular. Well I guess I am but I don't really think I am. I didn't strive to be, but somehow they consider me as such. I'm friends with every group in the school. From jocks to nerds and the emo's to whatever's opposite of emos. To me I am unpopular as they get. I'm average.

My dad once called me 'an unpopular of populars'. I thought it was the funniest thing in the world but for days I thought about it and, well, it seemed to fit. So to the silence of my room, I dubbed it my newest title. 'Unpopular Popular'.

X~x~X

The first person to ever consider me their best friend was when I was seven. I had friends then too, but not many. Seven is a rough age. Kids are learning from their parents and from school and already they're following the steps of another. At seven, I decided I didn't like doing what they were and just did what I wanted.

So ignoring their newest craze and the craze that would last well into highschool and beyond, I didn't fall and kiss the feet of one Sasuke Uchiha. In fact, to me he was just another kid in our school that just moved in. He was in my class and before I could say 'hello', he was surrounded. Thinking he had enough friends and probably didn't want one more. I let him be. I didn't follow his every step or his every word like the rest of my grade did. I just let him be. If I saw him by himself or if I was walking by, I'd say hi but otherwise I did what I wanted and pretty much was the butterfly of my class. I was always here or there but never stuck in either.

After the first few months that Sasuke had moved to our school, he approached me as I was sitting by myself on a swing and watching nothing but the world move by. When he sat beside me, I nodded hello but otherwise continued to do what I was doing. This went on for weeks until Sasuke spoke his first actual words to me. He asked me how my day was and I answered. Then being the nice guy I was I asked him and he just said 'okay'. I left it at that. A few more weeks went by with the same thing until one day he opened up to me and gave me another answer. From that answer a story was revealed that is his to tell and not mine. After that day, Sasuke slowly let me into his life and soon he was inviting me over to play at his house. So that's what I did almost every day and half the time still do now when I can. Since the age of seven, I found out everything about the raven haired boy. Even if he was cold to everyone now or brushed them off, I know he would never do the same to me. For me, he always has time. I bet if I asked him to go on a trip with me for a year, he'd go. But I won't ask. I've never demanded anything of Sasuke and I never would. I just gave him my time and my opinion, not a judgement. I let him be as he was. So as everyone knows the image he protrays, I know the real teen behind the mask.

The second person to call me best friend was surprisingly Itachi, Sasuke's older brother. Itachi is six years older then us. He's the cool kid that everyone wants to be but will never get the chance. Itachi is like a painting. It's beautiful to look at but holds so many secerts and no matter what you do, you'll never figure them out. So how I came to be his best friend, I'm not sure. I know he took an interest in me when I began going to his house with Sasuke. I was the first visitor that wasn't of their parents to ever grace their doorsteps. Before I knew it, at the age of eight, Itachi was coming to me just to either sit quietly beside me or speak his mind. I can honestly say that I'm the only person alive to ever see him cry or truly laugh. Not even Sasuke has seen anything besides what Itachi wants him to see. At first I thought it was weird. I mean here I was at eight almost nine and here he was coming to me to speak what he couldn't speak to another or to himself. Itachi once told me that he wouldn't know what he'd be now if I wasn't there for him back then. I didn't know what to say to that. I felt more confused then anything else but I nodded anyway.

From Itachi I gained other people that called me best friends as well. All of his friends are my friends. From money hungry Kakuzu, to puppet loving Sasori. War fanatic Deidara to plant loving Zetsu. Shark crazy Kisame to preaching Hidan. Paper folding Konan to peace wishing Nagato. I know things about them that make me raise a brow but because it's their life, it's not mine to lecture. Even crazy Tobi calls me his best friend.

Gaining them as friends happened pretty much from the year I was ten to the year I turned twelve.

But at nine, two days after my birthday, I gained the next person to claim me as the best friend. Kiba Inuzuka. He is dog crazy and knows everything about any breed. I once saved a dog from getting hit. Turned out it was one of his. Since then he's been by my side. At first he claimed he was repaying the debt by offering his own life as my slave or whatever but as time went on and I didn't order him to do anything, even though Sasuke did, Kiba realized that he could talk to me and I wouldn't laugh at him about his dreams or his wish for the future. He realized that I would never tell him to shut up or stop asking questions that I, myself, had no answer to. When Kiba asked me to help him with anything involving his dogs or his chores, I'd help him no questions asked. That's how it was then and how it is now.

At nine and a half, I was once again claimed. This time by one Sakura Haruno. Sakura always felt like an outcast and always thought she wasn't beautiful enough for the world. She once told me the only reason she became my friend was to get closer to Sasuke. I told her, I already knew that. She had apologised many times for that but I always waved her off and said, 'It's in the past and the past was left to rest and build as we go forward'. The day Sakura deemed me the 'best friend' was the day I told her to stop trying to be what she didn't want to be. I think I told her something along the lines of 'if you can't be you and be happy, you're not going to be someone else and be happy either'. She had cried and refused to talk to me for days. Four days later I found her being teased by older kids and I defended her. When they left I turned to her and basically told her what my father told me about mean kids. I went on to say she was beautiful the way she was, even if she wanted to be someone else and no matter what, so long as she was happy or thought she was happy, then I was happy for her. With a smile I made to move on but was unable to when her hands came around my waist and she cried into my back. That day we became true friends. Now she tries to mother me or dress me. I do wear the clothes she buys for me, I don't mind. But I won't be her barbie and so bought her one that she keeps in a glass case above her bed that always has a different outfit on when I see it. Apparently it was her first barbie.

When I was ten, Ino Yamanaka claimed me too. She was Sakura's rival in everything. Like Sakura she was obessed with Sasuke. Sasuke of course could care less then as he does now, but that didn't stop either girl. Ino was and is beautiful. She has the supermodel figure and looks. She knows it, the world knows it, heck the birds and the trees know it. Nobody was immune to her save for me and Sasuke. Even Kiba had a crush on her. I think Sasuke was immune because Ino was too much for him and still is. Not many people can handel Ino for long and not strangle her. I'm one of the few, or actually, the only one that will willingly spend the day with her. I don't know how Ino and I became friends. At first she deemed me her second rival after Sakura for Sasuke's affections but when I told her she could have him if she wanted, something Sasuke didn't quite enjoy and refused to speak to me for hours afterwards, Ino changed her tune somewhat. She asked me if I found her beautiful, I said yes. She asked me if I would date her, I shrugged. She asked me if I thought she had a calling, I nodded. She asked me so many things and I gave her an answer. Then she asked me to ask her a question. My question was 'Do you believe any of what you asked me?' She thought about this for days and days until she came back and gave me a determined yes. Then she told me I had to help her get to the top no matter what. So far I've kept my promise. Just last year I held her hand as she prepared for her first photoshot with some lipgloss or other. It was a big hit.

Also at ten Shikamaru Nara came into the picture. Shikamaru is lazy and smart. He does both like a pro and still he's a pretty cool guy. Shikamaru was and is different from the world. He does things slowly but they all get done perfectly. The only thing he had a problem with was loud and annoying things. Hints: Ino. The day Ino stopped going to him about everything he came to me and thanked me. Then he sat beside me on the grass and watched clouds. I didn't say anything or ask anything, but it wasn't soon after that I got his opinion on daily things. Meaning things no kids should know. Half the things he talked about I had no clue about but I answered to the best of my ability and he seemed satisfied. Even now, half the words he speaks flies over me but I try and he's still happy with what I answer. It works for both of us. He gets to speak about the economy or about some rare illness or something in between, and he knows I'll listen.

At eleven, Choji Akimichi joined my side. Choji is a chubby boy that was always picked on for the way he also looked. Now Choji is the nicest guy alive. You can't find any nicer then him. The day I became Choji's friend was the day he forgot his lunch. Not wanting a fellow student to starve, I gave him mine. With the biggest smile, he ate it. When he was done he blushed and said he was sorry for not giving me any back. I told him it was okay and I didn't mind. The next day he brought me a lunch along with his own. I ate it and once again I gave him mine. Since that day, I have eaten the lunch Choji feeds me and he eats the one I take. Choji used to be insecure about his size but when I never said anything about it he felt confused. He asked me one day why I never mentioned it and I said, 'what's to mention?'. Since then he hasn't asked me anything else about the way he looked. The only thing he'd say when someone asked or teased him, he'd say 'what's wrong with it? I'm big your small, he has blue eyes, she has blonde hair, you have...' and on it went. Choji and Shikamaru later claimed themselves as best friends but weirdly it's still me that they ask the most personal questions to.

At twelve, along with many others, I was once again claimed by Shino Aburame. Shino is obsessed with bugs. It's his life calling and the day he brought them to show the class his live collection of beatles, I was the only one not freaking out about it. In fact, I think I was the only one to hold one in my hand. Shino was surprised because not many people would have gotten close to them. He smiled at me and thanked me for not giving him grossed out looks or turning away as he was showing the class his greatest treasure. But that wasn't the day he made me his best friend. It was actually months later when I found a weird looking bug in my back yard and caught it. I put it in a box and put some nature in there as well. The next morning I was super careful not to jostle it too much and when I arrived at school, I went in search of Shino. It didn't take long to find him and when I did, I gave him the box and told him to take care of it or else before smiling and turning away. Later that day, Shino sat beside me and my other 'best friends' at lunch with the box in hand. He said he'd take care of it forever and make sure nothing would happen to it. That bug shockingly lived a year before it died. Shino was beyond depressed and had even cried as he told me it died. Not wanting him to worry, we went to his house after school and gave it a funeral. Every weekened after that, I'd go over and put a flower on it's grave. I still go every weekened and it seems to make Shino happy. Of course since then, I've found more bugs that seemed odd but Shino loves them and when they die, we give them a funeral. It's weird to everyone else but to me and Shino, we're saying good-bye to a friend.

At almost thirteen, I was dubbed the best friend by not one but two people. Neji and Hinata Hyuuga. Cousins that moved to our small part of the world when Neji's father died. Hinata was shy back then and somewhat is now, but it fits her. She's kind to everyone but for some strange reason, without me even doing anything but helping her and Neji find their way around the school, she claimed me as a friend and when I didn't tease her for her stutter or being inperfect, 'best' was added in. I became her best friend when I asked her to stop hiding herself from herself and find what makes her happy. Who knew it was dance that did that. Hinata was always afraid to fail at one of the things she always wished to do and to show her that it didn't matter if you were good or not, I joined a dance class and asked her to be my support. Three days into the thing I got her to practice with me and when she went from simple dance steps to ballet, I slowly pulled out and let her shine where she truly felt alive. Neji was a different story. We had once class together and he sat on the otherside of the room. I treated him like I treat everyone, kindly. I didn't demand answers or swoon when he looked at me. In fact, he reminded me a lot of Sasuke when we were kids. And like Sasuke, after a few months of simple hellos and nothing else from me, he came to me. I learned he had lost his mother when she gave birth to him and his father had passed away in an accident and that his uncle was pushing him to be more and more to the point of breaking. I told him my mother had died birthing me and my father was always looking to adopt kids because I wasn't the handful he always invisioned I'd be. I told him my father felt deprived of this. Neji had laughed and asked to meet my father and so I brought him to my house that day along with Sasuke. My dad was, needless to say, over joyed at more kids to entertain. And even though Neji thinks of my dad as his and tells him lots of things, I still know more about Neji then anyone else.

At only a few months into my thirteenth year, I met Rock Lee. The guy had way to much energy and not enough places to put it. He was loud, weird, and extream to the max. I thought he was pretty cool. Lee always had a smile. He couldn't go a day without one. Like everyone else, I assumed they were all real, but one day, out of no where, he came to me and said 'everyone seems to choose you to speak to, may I do the same?' in the most softest whispers. I nodded, and he told me why he is so happy. It was a secret then and to this day it remains one. Whenever Lee feels like he can't hold onto his smile, he comes to me. He tells me all the bad things that happen to him that day or since the last time we spoke, and I listen. I don't do anything else but listen to him. After the two hours of Lee speaking calmly he smiles again and gives me a big hug. Thanking me for listening and not judging, he goes home. One day I asked him why he hides behind a smile, and his answer was 'I smile, so that I know I can move on. I smile because to me, one smile on my face, gives another person a brighter day as they pass it on'. I remembered telling him that his smiles are not always what he needs, and his answer was, 'when the smiles don't work anymore, I come to you'. With a grin of my own, I invited him for a run around the track.

When I was fourteen, Tenten sought me out. Tenten was the jock of the school. She was better at sports then any guy out there. She could take on the coaches and still win without a doubt. Though some may see this as a talent that should be showed off, Tenten was unhappy with herself. She wanted to be more feminine. She wanted to have girl nights out, talk about boys, and do things all the other girls did, but that would never happen. All of Tenten's friends were guys and the girls of our school wouldn't associate with her for fear of being converted into another she-man. Ino, Hinata, and Sakura all tried to help her be more girly but everything they did was in vane. Tenten, no matter how hard she tried, couldn't get the girl part down. It confused me why she wanted to change all of a sudden until she, herself, told me she liked a guy that only liked girly girls. After failure after failure in trying to be something she's not, Ino sent her to me. There I was sitting shockingly by myself for the first time since ever, which felt nice, when Tenten came up to me and sat across from me. Before I could voice a word she said, 'Help me'. I listened to everything she said, all of it coming out as if bursting from her body and when she was done I looked at her and said, 'is the guy worth changing your life for?' Without hesitation she nodded. Knowing she was lying to herself but also knowing it was her choice, I sighed mentally. Then I asked her what she wanted me to help her with and she said I was a guy and therefore knew what went on in a guys head. Nodding, I let her ask me question after question about the guy she liked and certain things he did and what they meant. I told her my thoughts and she took everything to heart. A month later she came back to me and sat beside me. Then she said, 'you knew he wasn't meant for me didn't you?' I shrugged my shoulders and she asked, 'why didn't you say that?' I told her I wasn't going to stand in her way or force her to do anything. I said that I respected what she wanted and stayed back as was my place. She told me I should have said something and I said, 'Would you have listened if I said don't go to him?' she chuckled and said no. After that she asked me if any guy would want her. I said there is a guy but I won't say who since he's not ready to confess yet. I said the guy liked the way she was and didn't like the new her she was trying to be. Tenten had blushed and a few months later she began dating Lee. Yet I'm still the guy she comes to to find out what the things Lee does mean. Go figure.

At fourteen in a half I met Gaara Sabaku. He was anti-social to the max. He did everything he could to scare people away. He simply narrowed his eyes and everyone would pack up their stuff and leave. One day he tried the look on me. Of course he scared everyone I was sitting with but I was not going to run. I was there first and he had no right to boss me around. I told him that. Sasuke had whispered that I was an idiot for going against him but he wouldn't leave my side, nor would the others. Gaara was stunned that I was glaring back and asked me if I feared him. I told him I did fear him, but I wasn't going to run. He smirked at me and left. The next day he cornered me when I was walking with Ino to class. Ino turned pale and hid behind me. I told Gaara that I didn't like people scaring my friends and he said he wasn't trying to. I said he was a liar and with a gentle grip on Ino, I walked away. This went on for a while until I rolled my eyes at him when he cornered me in the bathroom. I crossed my arms and told him I wasn't fighting him and if I hurt his ego, I would take the blame but it was his fault for being jerk. I know I was being rude, but I was tired of his childish antics. Gaara surprised me by saying he wasn't trying to fight me and declared with the same monotone voice that we were best friends. I blinked in shock and he smirked and walked away. Till this day I don't know how he decided that but I'm not going to fight it. Gaara is a cool guy once you get passed his glares and narrowed eyed look. Not there is anything wrong with that but one of these days I'd like to get my food without my pop all over the tray because the waiter was freaking over Gaara.

Not long after that I was titled 'best friend' by Temari and Kankuro. They had simply said that I gained Gaara's trust and so saw no reason why they couldn't befriend me too. Then they realized, like everyone else, I listened well and so now have two more people calling my phone to tell me problems and getting advice. No complaints there though. Turns out I like helping people.

Not long after that I met other people that put a claim on me. Old, young, and everyone in between. I've met a lot of people and a lot of people have met me.

My dad jokes I should get a secatury or something. Sasuke says I need to stop making friends and everyone else writes on my calander in my room of what day and time they get to hang out with me. So basically my calander is my date book that I never get to fill in because almost every day is booked. I'm not sure how half the time they enter my house. I'm pretty sure I lock the door when I go to school and my dad locks it when he comes home. I'm thinking they all have keys but no one is confessing to that.

The point is, I'm just me. I'm not anything special. I'm not trying to rule the world. I'm not doing anything but what I usually do. I don't pretend to fit in. I don't hide or demand attention.

Who knew me being me would result in this? Who knew not trying to fit in and not trying to not fit in would call more attention to myself? So if people wish to call me popular, I don't mind. It's their title for me. To me, I'll always be unpopular or as I mentioned eariler, The Unpopular of Populars.

**A/N: I hate writing these but I feel I must. This is a pointless one shot that wouldn't let me update my other ten stories I'm currently working on until I typed it out. Once done, I could focus on the others and they all flowed once this was out of the way. And like all pieces of my writing that come to be, I had to post it. It would be a crime not to. Besides, who writes something and doesn't post it just because?**


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